Session 8. Order Out of Chaos: Our Solar System

Learning Goals

During this session, you will have an opportunity to build understandings
to help you:

Contrast the characteristics of the three types of planetary
bodies in our solar system

Describe the prominent theory of planet formation

Discuss the scientific evidence that informs our understanding
of how and when our solar system formed

Comprehend the scale of our solar system

Video Overview

Have you ever looked into that seemingly endless blanket of stars in
the night sky and wondered: Is there another planet like ours? Is Earth
unique in the Universe? What is the likelihood of the existence of solar
systems like ours? In order to contemplate these questions, we must first
understand the story of our own solar system.

Video Outline

What is the nature of our solar system? How did it form? How did the
Earth form? These are questions that have perplexed the thinkers,
the dreamers, and the explorers-at-heart of humankind for centuries. Science
is finally able to offer some insight into answers to these questions
based on evidence gathered from many intriguing sources. Our
investigation
of the solar system begins by thinking about the nature of its
planetary bodies. Dr. Scott Kenyon explores the characteristics of the
planets and
smaller bodies in our solar system as well as how they formed,
and what this suggests about the origin of the solar system. Dr. Sarah
Stewart
examines the influence of the Sun on planet size, composition,
and placement in the solar system. Dr. Ursula Marvin leads us on an investigation
of
meteorites and the clues about the birth of our solar system
that they provide. Dr. Kenyon concludes our solar system exploration by
raising
questions about the possibility of extra-solar
planets and systems.

Throughout the video, we observe elementary school children being interviewed
as they explore their ideas about the solar system, planet
formation, and planetary motion. We visit Carol
Berlin and her third graders at the Charlotte A. Dunning School in Framingham, Massachusetts.
We observe
as the students apply their knowledge of the planets in a culminating
activity to create a schoolyard solar system.